Henne Treasure Hunting
by Charlett
Summary: [Pregame] Balthier has decided to go treasure hunting in the Henne Mines, but he's wanted by Arcadia! Who can he trust to take care of the Strahl? Why, our favorite white Moogle, Nono, of course! Oneshot


I thought that it'd be nice to write a story about NONO. Because I LOVE Nono. Moogles! heeeehehehehe

Anyway, I wrote this like, months ago but never put it up. Probably because all you guys are gunna see a female OC and go "ZOMG MARY SUE" and click the back button. Like you ALL do.

Well, lemme tell you that if anything, this is Mary Sue bashing, although it's not technically, but it's not Mary Suing it up or anything, and besides, it's about NONO. Who deserves all the Mary Sues in the world anyway.

Nono's "Class" is based off of the Engineer class in Final Fantasy Tactics Advance (and if you've never played it, why in the world are you playing FFXII anyway?). So his abilities are based off of that.

Have fun reading, everyone! Without Futher Ado:

READ ON!

---

Rabanastre was abuzz with goings on of all types. As Bangaa merchants haggled with money wary Seeq, Imperial Humes attempted to calm the peace from Rabanastrian insurgents threatening riots. It was a day like any other day since the Archadian takeover, but two people set themselves apart as they walked down the road. A Moogle mechanic caught the attention of many people, mostly because he was practically running to keep up with the strides of the long legged and swift Viera at his side. As Nono jogged alongside Sky Pirate Fran, he clutched his hat to keep it from flying off into the wind and huffed a bit, attempting to catch his breath long enough to cry "Slow down, Kupo!"

Fran didn't heed the tiny Moogle's cry, "You spent too much time at the Clan Hall. Balthier is awaiting our return." Nono wasn't sure, but he was pretty certain the Viera stepped up the pace after that. She may have been annoyed, but she never let it out in any other way.

"But it's been so long since I've seen Montblanc, Kupo!" Nono proclaimed after stopping a bit to catch his breath and rushing to catch up with the woman, "I… I needed to catch up with everything he's been doing!"

"Same as you're doing now," Fran replied matter-of-factly. Nono's pompom drooped with a sigh, "We are almost at the Sandsea. Come now, let's go."

"Kupo!" Nono cried as Fran began to abandon him. He sucked in a deep breath, willed away the pain in his sides, and ran to meet back with the Viera, waving his arms about, "Wait for me!"

---

The Sandsea was bustling at this time. Noon meant lunch, and plenty of hungry Mark Hunters and Sky Pirates were swapping tips and information as they got their next meal. Fran bypassed the entire crowd and instead walked up the stairs to the second floor. There, on the right, sitting at their "usual" table, was Balthier the Sky Pirate, Fran's "Business Associate". Nono never understood why she didn't just say they were Partners in Kupo.

"Took you long enough," Balthier said good-naturedly, a smile gracing his face. It wasn't unusual, Nono noted, the Sky Pirate smiled in nearly every situation, "You wouldn't believe how many other people tried to foist me off on another table. To think they had the gall to suggest that this was THEIR usual table."

"No manners at all," Fran replied almost mechanically about the unsuccessful foisters, "Do you mind?"

"Not at all," Balthier replied with another witty smile as Fran settled herself down before he even spoke. Nono scrambled onto the chair and practically had to stand to see over the table, "I've ordered for the lot, if that's not argumentative. Hyena Steak for the Moogle, Gagazet Greens for the Lady, am I correct?"

"Kupo, that's the best steak they have?" Nono complained, "Or are you just skimping us on the bill?"

"You wanna eat whatever you want; you can pay the bill next time," Balthier replied with a swig of Marilith Wine. Fran and Nono stared at the captain's drinking of such rare alcohol, and he looked like he was going to laugh, "I'm kidding. Adamantoise Barbeque is your favorite, right?"

Nono smiled happily, "Yes, it is!"

"Too bad, they were out," Balthier replied, making Nono's pompom droop again, "Got you some Piranha Gumbo instead. You don't like Gyshal Greens, right Fran? Those Gagazet Greens were the next best thing."

"I'm fine, thank you," Was the Viera's reply. She seemed to be intent on watching some rookie Mark Hunters as they searched for Marks that were in their league on the board. They seemed to get pretty rowdy, eventually pushing and shoving on each other as they attempted to get their point across in very manly and barbaric ways. Nono tried to look away. Best not to make eye contact or the brutes may start thinking that it was a threat.

Balthier yawned a bit as the three waited for their food, and the Viera continued to stare as a young waitress attempted to calm the rookies down. Fran didn't even flinch when one of the men roughly grabbed her arm with a shout of, "Would you shut up? We're trying to talk here!"

Fran's partner stood up with an inconspicuous cough, and the Moogle blinked at the Sky Pirate as he pocketed his hands and walked down to the first floor nonchalantly. In fact, it was so nonchalant that the others in the bar didn't even notice his movement; they were too busy wondering how the waitress would fare.

"Let me go, you brutes!" The woman cried out, slapping her captor across the cheek ineffectually, "Let me go!"

The rest of the boys laughed aloud at the rough treatment their leader was getting at the hands of the woman, and he gave a hiss, "Listen, toots, some people get offended like when they're called such names like 'brute', I think you owe us an apology!"

"No!" Balthier blinked as a woman stood up from the crowds. The Sky Pirate didn't know that there were other good souls in this place; however it was pretty easy to assume another woman would come to the barmaid's rescue. He slunk back into the shadows to see how this played out, "I think you guys owe HER an apology!"

"Ohhhh! I'm so scared!" The leader of the rookies cried in a girly high voice as his two friends drew swords, "Take her out, boys!"

The bar was crowded, so the woman did what any woman would do to avoid involving bystanders in it. She got onto the high ground and waved her sword furiously… which didn't help in avoiding bystanders at all. Nono covered his eyes and Balthier blinked as people in the sword's path ducked and covered. It appeared to the Sky Pirate duo that this other woman was just as much rookie as the others. She had the high ground, however, and succeeded in dealing heavy damage with only a few cuts and scrapes on her knees. She froze, however, when the leader (who had abandoned the bar wench) suddenly drew his sword and raised it to her neck. Since when did the man get there that fast? Must have been a Haste spell someone in the room had cast. Balthier gave a sigh.

"You going to squeal for mercy, little woman?" The man asked, a smile on his face that made all of Nono's hair stand on end, "I like it when they scream."

"Then you are among the most stinking lump of refuse on the face of the planet, if you understand where I'm coming from," Balthier murmured, approaching the enemy with a smile. Kill 'em with kindness, that's what his instructors always told him. The Vega was then out in a flash, "I'd put down that weapon if I were you. That is, unless you want to be on the receiving end of a couple of Onion Shots. S'alright with me."

The man began sweating bullets, and eventually lowered the weapon with a sigh of defeat. Fran's ears suddenly swerved, focusing directly on the Mark Hunter, "Look out!"

The Viera's warning was just in time, and went heeded in perfect harmony. Despite being Hasted, Balthier was able to block the quick sword attack with expert precision and knock the enemy back with the butt of the Vega. With a flick of his wrist, he cocked the gun, took aim in less than a second, and fired, making the entire bar duck in case shrapnel ricocheted. Everyone blinked at the Mark Hunter as he dropped to the floor, twitching madly and unnaturally fast (still being hasted, after all); his eyes wide in disbelief, a smoking hole though his head. Balthier shouldered the Vega once again, and turned on his heel to enjoy the rest of his Marilith Wine. Nono clapped happily for the captain as he sat back down, kicked his feet up on the table, and returned to drinking as if nothing had happened. Fran simply kept her eyes on the woman Balthier had saved. She seemed… almost familiar…

---

"Kupooooo," Nono cooed, sitting back to revel in the wonderful tasting Gumbo, "So goooood." He practically doubled his body weight after everything he ate. Balthier smirked at the plump little Moogle, and the mechanic wondered if the Sky Pirate was planning on fattening him up to eat him. That face was pretty scary…

The Viera's ears twitched just a bit as she lowered her fork onto her plate, but it was enough movement for the others to realize that she was preparing to speak, and they looked up to listen for her next statement, "I am finished with my meal. Are we off?"

Balthier sighed, leaning forward to lean on his elbow and scratch a rogue itch on his cheek, "I… guess so. There's only one," He lifted his finger to emphasize this statement, "problem. Where are we off to? There hasn't been one lead on any decent treasure for the past month."

Nono watched as the Sky Pirates spoke with one another on their next destination. There must be SOMEPLACE they could go, even if it was just to the Phon Coast to pick up Mark Hunting gossip. After paying Nono for extensive Strahl-repairs when they had to escape from that huge DoomGaze or whatever that beast was called, their purse strings were getting mighty tight, and they needed gil for their next meal.

"Are you looking for treasure?" Balthier had to restart his heart and Nono practically clutched onto Fran as someone suddenly appeared near the table, leaning on her hands and looking at the three. The three returned the look and Balthier blinked, Nono looked quizzical and Fran was unfazed: It was the woman that the Sky Pirate had saved, "Then today's your lucky day, boys and girl!" She clapped her hands together, "I've decided I want to come with you and help you find some!"

Silence. Balthier continued to stare. Fran was still unfazed and Nono (Who noticed that the woman was staring at him more than the others) was the first to snap out of it, "Kupo… but… I don't usually… fly the Strahl with these guys. I'm just their mechanic. So I can't really speak for them, Kupo."

Baltheir finally snapped out of his stupor ("Thank Kupo!" Nono sighed), and tried to contain a light chuckle, "My Lady, please, we've lost enough money on one of our 'escapades', and we don't have enough money to spend on feeding another mouth," He smiled, hoping that it would be enough to have her not notice that he meant, "A rookie like you? Never!"

Fran looked back out over the bar like a tiger surveying her territory, refusing to get stuck in the middle of this, and Nono wanted to hop off the stool and head back to work at the Aerodome. Balthier was attempting (in vain) to shrug the woman off, but she was persistent, "Come now, Mister. You helped me out, doesn't that warrant me…" She reached out to pinch the Sky Pirate's cheek, "a thank you?"

The pirate stood and dropped a bundle of gil on the table, "And I truly would let any other woman give me a thank you (especially if it was THAT kind of 'thank you') but I just don't take women off the street and fly them into the sky." The woman gave a disbelieving cry even as Fran stood and Nono hopped off the chair to follow the two. She rushed after them, jogging down the stairs and reaching out to grab the arm of the man.

"Please!" She cried, "I need some help!"

"_You certainly do…"_ Balthier thought as they left the bar and started down the street towards Rabanastre's Western Gate and the Aerodome, "Look," He replied, turning around and walking backwards, his usual smile beginning to fade. He placed his hands in his pockets and continued to speak, "I can't bring you along. If I did, then you'd be in danger of attack. If something happened to you, then it'd be on my head. I can't do that to a lady. I just… can't. Got it?" The woman stopped her persistent demands and simply discontinued walking. Certain that the Sky Pirate had finally gotten through to her thick skull; he turned around and started back down to the dome.

"I… need help…" She murmured, her voice desperate enough that Balthier stopped instinctively, and Fran let out an inaudible sigh, "There's… a treasure… I need to get… but I can't do it on my own. I… I need your help…"

Balthier tensed, and Nono's pompom shot straight up. He could tell that the Sky Pirate had caught that word too. A treasure? Was it true, did she know of the location of a great treasure? "Where is it?" The Sky Pirate asked, not turning to face the woman.

"The… Henne Mines…" The woman replied, looking hopeful, "You… could you…?"

"My Lady," Balthier whirled around, a smile gracing his face once again, "You can come, but… just this once."

"Oh boy, Mister!" She cried, rushing forward to hug the Sky Pirate. He slowly let her take his hands instead, "My name is Marissa. What's yours?"

Nono chuckled as Balthier tensed again. Who hadn't heard of the great Captain Balthier? "B… Balthier, Miss Marissa," He replied, letting her take his arm as he led her off to the airship hanger.

"THE Balthier?" She howled, "The famous Sky Pirate!?"

"Not so loud!" He chastised Marissa, placing a finger on his lips, "The Imperials are swarming around here, you know," Fran's footsteps rained heavier on the pavement. Nono assumed she was getting tense from this ordeal as well. If they were caught by the Imperials because of a Rookie Mark Hunter…

---

The hangars in the Aerodome sported a large, open space made especially for huge airships. However, the Strahl wasn't nearly as huge as most of the Imperial carriers, and in the huge hangar it looked like a small toy. Marissa seemed excited about it, and Balthier hoped that he wouldn't have to bring any other people THIS happy about airships on his adventures. Leading Men had to deal with stress from battle, not stress from incompetent journeymen, "So this is your airship, huh?" She asked, "Shall we go?"

"I suppose, but there's something I'm wondering about," Balthier said, rubbing his chin in thought, "It's just… the Henne Mines is in Imperial territory. I don't want to leave the Strahl out there all by its lonesome."

"Kupo!" Nono said, smiling happily, "That's my cue then, right? You want me to baby-sit it, huh Kupo?"

"If you would," Fran said quietly as the Sky Pirates boarded, followed by Marissa, "You do so well at taking care of it."

"Kupo… not THAT good!" Nono said happily, blushing through his snowy white fur as he followed Marissa and Balthier lead the group to the cockpit. He settled himself down with a smirk towards the others and Nono nodded in understanding. He crawled into a chair and grabbed at the belt as the others strapped down.

"You know…" Fran murmured, her ears swerving towards Balthier as he fired up the airship and it roared to life. She continued speaking, enough that the roar drowned out her voice as far back as Nono and Marissa, but Balthier could hear it if he strained, "It is Marissa. Does she not seem…?"

"I know," Balthier replied, turning to Fran as the Strahl rose into the air and the airship prepared to blast off. He smiled, "I know she's not who she seems." Yet before Fran could continue the conversation, he slammed hard on the acceleration, and the Strahl was off.

---

The Zus flying high over the sky squawked as an airship soared high above their home in Ozmone Plain. The Strahl was slowing down over the Garif Village where the Sky Pirates were planning on renting a ride to the isolated Henne Mines, and Nono stared out over the landscape as they began their descent.

"Everyone out, we're picking up some Chocobos and we'll be out of here," Balthier said as he strode from the cockpit. Fran was up and out, followed by Marissa, and before Nono could get up, Balthier nodded in the direction of the Moogle, "You've got her covered, right?"

"Of course, Kupo!" Nono replied, "I'll take good care of the Strahl!" He saluted at the three as they left the airship and took a quick walk to the village. The Moogle sighed and sat back down, pulling out his favorite lucky gil and flipping it over and over, "And now… the wait, Kupo…"

---

"Kweeeeeh!" The Chocobo protested as Balthier snapped back on the reins, halting its movement. The three stared at the mines, which seemed almost too quiet for a normal day of work. Fran's eyes narrowed, "Marissa, what's going on?"

"What are you talking about?" She asked the Sky Pirate as she dismounted and tied the yellow bird to a strong branch, "It's an Imperial holiday. I don't think you'd know though, you guys aren't Imperials." Balthier dismounted as well, absolutely silent. Fran noticed that his lips were pursed so tightly they were white. The Viera stored this in her memory but did not decide to press on the matter. She simply hopped off and gave a gasp when her mount nudged her back, cooing happily as it searched her pack.

"I think it's looking for some gyshal greens!" Marissa giggled. Balthier rubbed his temples as he tied up his mount; as if it weren't obvious what the bird wanted…

Fran looked to Balthier, as if pleading with him to abandon this quest, but instead turned to the chocobo to rub its beak, "In… indeed…"

"Well then, shall we enter the mines?" Marissa asked, and Balthier led the way into the caverns. The three didn't have much trouble with the stray bats flying about, but Fran soon got fidgety. She looked at Marissa, and the woman looked back at the Viera, "Is something wrong?"

"Who are you?" Fran asked, quick and straight to the point, "Who… are you…?"

"No one, really…" Marissa murmured, "I've been an orphan as long as I can remember. I used to be an Imperial Guardswoman though, you know…" She looked at Fran, a smile appearing on her face, "To tell the truth, I actually recognized you guys from the beginning. I… always had a crush on Balthier, since I was younger, just barely hitting adulthood. I… I left the Imperial army so I could find him. I've always wanted to be with him."

To Marissa it seemed Fran was listening intently, her eyes were focused on the woman, but in reality her ears were swerved and focusing on Balthier. She hadn't listened to a word she said, "I just thought I could tell you. We're both women, so…"

"You want to be with Balthier, then?" Fran interrupted, as if she could read Marissa's mind. The rookie looked up at the Viera, and nodded. Fran took a deep breath, as if hesitant to continue, but did so, "Then I won't be a burden any longer."

Marissa stopped, so Fran could finish, "I will attend to the chocobos," she then sucked in another breath, "Go…" She seemed to wince before finishing, "get him…" The rookie stared as Fran turned on her high heel and walked briskly from the mines. Marissa's jaw dropped. Was it that easy? No, it COULDN'T have been that easy. Was she serious? It… Marissa couldn't second guess herself. If it was that easy, then it HAD to be that easy! She whirled back around to meet with Balthier and lead him straight to that treasure…

---

Nono continued to flip his gil, getting quite bored with babysitting, "Kupo… if only there was something fun going on…"

He gave a cry when he heard gunshots outside. He spoke too soon, something WAS going on outside! "This is the Imperial army! The Strahl is under Imperial control! If there is anyone inside, come out with your hands up!"

Nono ran around in circles for a bit, absolutely terrified. What was he going to do? Suddenly, he stopped and looked down at his lucky gil. An idea hit him, and he rushed to open the doorway outside. He opened the door, and looked out at the small group of Imperials in front of him. One of them was even a judge, "Kuuuupoooo," The engineer whined, "It's only me in here! Don't hurt me!"

"Stand down," The judge said, raising his hand, "It's just the airship's engineer…"

Nono hopped out of the airship, but stood in front of the stairs, disallowing entry into the Strahl, holding a coin up at the others, "if you would…" The judge said. His face was obscured by his helmet, but it was quite obvious his brows were knitted, "Allow us through?"

"See this?" Nono asked, pulling up his gil coin. Everyone blinked as he flipped it into the air, "Good Night!" It dropped into his furry paw and allowed the Imperials to look at the red side that was up. Most didn't even notice the color before they dropped to the floor, unconscious.

"Kupooooo…" Nono said happily, his pompom bouncing with joy, "And I was hoping one of them would resist it. I wanted to hit him with my wrench…" He settled down on the bottom most stair and watched as the Imperials snored happily. The Moogle began flipping his lucky gil coin once again, but gasped when he heard a "click!" Turning slowly, he saw an Imperial private pointing an old fashion gun at the Moogle's face.

"D… Don't move…" The Imperial stuttered, "I… don't wanna shoot you, little guy."

"Listen, buddy," Nono said, trying to calm the man down, "Balthier's going to be back here in just a moment. He's going to be here, and let me tell you, he's got a much better aim than you do."

"I doubt it," The loose mouthed private said, "Marissa's with him."

"Kupo?"

"She's one of our best Sky Pirate Assassins," The man said smugly, "she acts like a rookie and lures Sky Pirates deep into Imperial territory, where she slits their throat nice and easy."

"K… Kupo… you can't be serious!" Nono cried, but quickly calmed down when he remembered what the Imperial was holding, "I… I'm just going to sit… right… here…"

The private nodded, "You do that," He said, keeping the gun pointed at Nono's head, waiting for the moment that the rest of the Imperials woke up. The Moogle had to think… how was he going to get the private with his wrench with that in his face? He would have to think of something…

---

Balthier suddenly sneezed loudly, and Marissa looked up worriedly at him, "Did someone talk about you?" She asked.

"I don't know…" He muttered truthfully, rubbing his nose, "I bet it's just cold down here. I feel like someone's walking over my grave."

"That's not a good sign," The woman said, blinking.

There was silence for a moment as the two continued walking, but suddenly Balthier stopped, "Speaking of bad signs," The Sky Pirate looked up, "Where's Fran?"

"She went back to check on the chocobos," Marissa replied, blushing a bit, "She said she wanted to leave us to ourselves."

"Why would she…" Realization hit the captain, and his smile widened from ear to ear, "Aaaaah, ever a romantic, that Viera."

"I never would have pegged her to be like that…" The rookie replied. The two continued to walk on in relative silence, while thoughts flooded Marissa's mind. Did Balthier really not mind Fran's abandonment of the two? Did they do this normally? Was Balthier THAT much of a player? She didn't get it, she couldn't grasp it. Was he really trusting her this much to be away from his partner and still not mind being alone with a strange woman? "Uh… Balthier?" She squeaked.

The captain was silent for a long while, and suddenly looked down at the woman by his side, "Huh?"

Marissa stopped at a four way intersection and Marissa smiled, "How long were you planning on staying alive?"

Balthier stroked his chin, his smile not wavering, "At least another year. Although you know, I'm still paying off loans for Nono's repairs on the Strahl, so I guess it wouldn't be too much of a loss." Marissa blinked as Balthier weighed pros and cons of life or death. He continued this for about five more minutes, and finally looked back down at the seething woman, "Why'd you need to know?" He asked through a mouthful of pearly whites.

"Because I'm going to have to ask you to die," She replied, taking a step back and slamming her fist on a button on the wall. The Sky Pirate gave a cry as he was hoisted into the air by a net, "I never expected you to be such a windbag, Master Balthier."

"A Leading Man, dying from a young woman's trap with such a low class net? The Gods are surely crying this day," Balthier mourned his fate as nonchalantly as if they were walking down the road. Marissa cocked an eyebrow. Could he REALLY not be scared of what was to come? He had no knife, he couldn't cut himself loose, all he could do was wait until she poisoned him and left him to die! Why was he still SMILING?

"You… It doesn't matter how you die!" The assassin shouted, trying not to waver from Balthier's smile, "I will…" She gave a gasp as Balthier whipped up the Vega. She had seen his speed with his draw, and matched it, "Protect!" A shield appeared around her, and the Onion Shots slid away without so much as grazing the assassin. Marissa smiled at the Sky Pirate, "Too bad, Captain Balthier. You're dead."

She celebrated happily as Balthier's smile disappeared and he went to inspect the gun. It wasn't strong enough to get through her defenses, and for once, it left the man without his smile. She wouldn't be stopped by him. Now all that was left was to Poison him and leave him to have his insides eat themselves, "Good bye, Captain Balthier. Poison!"

The Sky Pirate had no chance of resisting the magic. If only he had picked up a Tourmaline Ring back at Rabanastre, perhaps this could all have been avoided. Oh well, what's done was done. The Captain settled down as he began to cough up some bile. Marissa would have left by now, but he… he was practically taking a nap! What the HELL was wrong with him?

"I'd stand down, if I were you," A voice said from the tunnels they came from. It was cool, calm, collected, something that made Marissa feel hot, angry, and chaotic. It was Fran, her bow taught with an arrow, ready to strike, "I said… Stand down…"

Marissa hissed and released the Mist that had formed in her hands, allowing it to dissipate into the air. Certain that for now, the woman would not attempt to strike, Fran raised her bow and released her arrow, allowing it to slide through the ropes that held the net, and letting Balthier drop to the floor, hacking up more bile from the drop.

"Next time, allow me some warning, Fran?" He moaned, rubbing his rear, which was hurting terribly.

"How… why… WHEN… But… but… you…" Marissa cried, whipping her head towards Balthier (who was untangling himself from the net) and then back to Fran, back and forth until it landed on Balthier one last time, "HOW? How did you KNOW?"

"You screwed up," Balthier replied, standing up and taking out a handkerchief, rubbing his bottom lip of the black crap that he was throwing up. After returning the kerchief to his pocket, he smiled, "You let one of your targets live…

"The young partner of Gregory Skylighter was hiding in the very room you assassinated the captain in. You didn't notice him, but he saw your face. Pretty soon, your name and face were known by everyone in Balfonheim. Dear Marissa, you screwed up." The assassin hissed, her lips turning purple, as the Captain smiled happily.

"It… can't be…"

"And then…" Balthier suddenly raised a finger, asking for a moment, and he pulled out his handkerchief, hacking black bile straight into it. Fran tensed a bit, if only for empathy towards her partner, and he finally pulled the rag away, staring at the once white kerchief that was now black. He discarded it with an air of disgust, "you said that today was an Imperial holiday. Now… I do know that the Archadian holiday is today, but I also know that it takes place during the evening. No one gets a day off of work during evening holidays."

"But… but but but…" Marissa took a step back, "Only an… only an Archadian would know something like that!"

"You learn lots of things breaking bread with drunken Sky Pirates," Balthier replied, licking his lips, his smile fading just slightly. He then coughed up some more of the black crap, "Dammit, Fran, do we have any antidotes?"

"I believe you said we didn't need any. We left them on the Strahl to save room in our packs for the treasure," Fran replied with nary a hitch. Balthier grumbled and he wiped the excess bile from his chin with his own fingers.

"Anyway, we figured out it was you and decided to separate ourselves. You'd assume we trusted you and attack one of us, and then the other would return to help. It worked, too. We've got you holy crap what the hell are you casting!?"

Fran yanked an arrow from her quiver as Balthier loaded up his gun, but his poison slowed his reaction time and Marissa got her spell off, "Sleep!" Fran dropped to the floor, snoring a bit. Balthier gave a cry as she suddenly pulled a dagger and rushed towards the Captain, screeching a war shout.

There was a "click!" of the Vega cocking itself and Marissa stopped moving. She was standing over the hacking Balthier, who had dropped into the corner, the Vega pointing straight at the woman's forehead, her dagger flashing in the torchlight. They were… they were… stuck in a rather precarious situation. Balthier had to keep from coughing. One slip up and the woman could get the upper hand. This could easily be the end of the Captain…

"So…" Marissa murmured, "Anything else you wanna talk about?" Balthier refused to speak. It'd irritate his throat and he'd start hacking up the bile again. He licked his lips unhappily, and continued to stare at the dagger. He just had to shoot. He just had to fire… but… Dammit, he couldn't! He couldn't just pull that trigger! She… she was a WOMAN! He cursed his promise to himself that he wouldn't let her be hurt. He needed to think of something… Something fast…

And then the cough came again. He hacked loudly and jolted violently. He then felt the pain of the assassin's dagger sliding deep into his side, and his coughing jolted his finger, which pressed the trigger, which went off loudly. Marissa fell backwards from the force, her forehead smoking as the Onion Shot imbedded itself in her brain. The Imperial Assassin dropped to the floor and twitched a moment, then lay still.

Balthier shut his eyes as he dropped the Vega and grabbed the dagger, wincing as he yanked it from his side. It was bleeding profusely, so he prepared to get back to Fran. She was the one holding the Hi-Potions. He attempted to pull himself up, but the pain was too much to handle. The poison had turned most of his organs to mush, and he dropped back to the floor, smiling a bit as he slowly began to bleed out, "So…" he murmured, smiling happily, "All I have to do is wait out for Fran to awaken, huh?" He chuckled, knowing that he'd be fine. After all, Leading Men never kicked the bucket. Never…

---

"Kupooooo…" Nono whined as he stared at the gun in his face. They had been sitting there for quite a while, and the Moogle was getting afraid that the other Imperials would wake up. There was a sudden rumble, and he looked up at a herd of stampeding wild chocobos, of all different colors and varieties, rushing across the plains. Nono's pompom suddenly stood straight up and he gave a cry, "Is that? Is that…?

"The legendary Golden Chocobo!?"

The private looked up quickly, scanning the colors of yellow, red and black, "Where?" He cried, "Where?" He suddenly groaned as a wrench slammed him on the head and he dropped to the floor, unconscious.

"Kupo…" The Moogle said, "Too easy…"

"Huh?" One of the Imperials moaned, beginning to awaken, "What about a Golden Chocobo?" Nono didn't even look at the guard as he slammed his wrench on that man's head. He dropped back into the pile of sleeping men.

"Balthier… come back soon, I'm so bored, Kupo…"

---

"Mmmhmmm…" Fran muttered, her ears twitching, when she heard some whistling. She awoke quickly and saw her partner, leaning against the wall and whistling a song, probably to keep from remembering the pain he was in, "Balthier! What happened?"

"Ineeda poshun…" He replied, his eyes half banked, his voice slurring words beyond recognition, "Please?"

Fran dug around her pack and grabbed a Hi-Potion, handing it over to the Captain. She uncorked it for him so he could down it as quickly as possible. As he settled back to let the item work its magic, she approached Marissa's prone body and started searching it, "I didn't think you'd stoop so low, Fran," Balthier murmured through a playful smile, his voice returning to normal, "looting the body of a woman, and a rather good warrior, at that."

"Ah, an X-Potion," Fran interrupted, pulling up a potion and handed it over to Balthier, "That should help. I'll see if she has an antidote." Balthier uncorked the bottle and downed it in a flash, just as Fran stood, "It appears we need to head back to the Strahl and get one from it. Come on." She reached out and took his arm, helping him up. The two walked carefully from the mines and approached their chocobo mounts. The third one, Marissa's, stared quizzically at the two, and the Captain gave the bird an apologetic smile.

"Hey little guy, you'll have to go back home alone," Balthier said as Fran let the Chocobo go and the bird rushed off with a cry.

"Are you okay?" Fran asked as she mounted her Chocobo. Her partner seemed out of it, but he was able to mount his own Chocobo and nod at her. The Viera snapped the reins, "Well then, let's go."

"Kwweeeeeh!" The Chocobo cried as the two were off, heading back towards the Strahl.

---

Nono sat on the stairs, bored out of his mind. It was then that he heard a Chocobo's cry and leapt up to look hopefully at the two people arriving over the horizon. Fran halted her Chocobo and leapt off in one graceful movement, jogging quickly into the Strahl to pick up an antidote for the Captain, who was smiling even as his Chocobo trotted up behind Fran's bird, "So…" He murmured, looking at the guards snoring peacefully on the floor, "It seems you had your fair share of work. I'm afraid Marissa must have tipped them off. I do apologize for your hard work."

"No worries, Kupo!" Nono replied as Fran came back out of the Airship to hand the antidote over to her partner. The Sky Pirate downed the drink in one gulp, and sighed happily as he stopped coughing up the bile that had been accumulating in his throat again.

"Well then, shall we be off?" Balthier asked, dismounting and letting the Chocobo rush off with a "Kweh!" He strode back into the airship, followed by Nono and Fran, and began settling himself down in the captain's chair, "Well, that turned out to be the biggest waste of time in the world. She didn't even have the courtesy to lead us to any treasure before attempting to kill us."

"I'm sure we'll find something soon," Fran replied, just like she always did when Balthier complained about lack of funds.

"Kupo, next time, bring me along for the next adventure!" Nono proclaimed as the Strahl roared to life. The Imperials outside groaned when they heard a loud noise. When they finally realized what that noise was, the airship was high enough that they were never going to bring it down with their flimsy projectiles. The airship soared off, back towards Rabanastre.

Nono flipped his coin as he sat in the back, Fran's ears swerved at any slight disturbance in noise, her eyes scanning the world below her, and Balthier continued to whistle through his pearly whites. He didn't realize that he was unconsciously whistling the Archadian songs of today's holiday. He wondered in the back of his head whether or not the Festival of the Lights would be just as beautiful as he always remembered it as a kid… and then promptly thought about what the Sandsea's soup special was going to be that night.

**The End!**

---

Hope you guys enjoyed it. I was going to write... you know, a pregame story for each of the characters, but I don't think I will. Hope you guys enjoyed this story at least. Give me some reviews! Tell me what you hated or liked about it! Thanks!**  
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